The ‘A Passion to Inspire’ event showcased Asian cuisine and highlighted the rewards of pursuing a career in hospitality. The six finalists are Loughborough College, New City College, North Hertfordshire College, Sheffield College, University College Birmingham and University of West London.
Hosted by Hilton T5 the student chefs had an educational day, which included a culinary journey of spices led by Cyrus Todiwala. The Tilda rice people, Luke Dalley, Simon Hall and Gareth Jones, explored the importance of rice and its culinary possibilities.
Steve Munkley executive chef at the Royal Garden Hotel and his master chef Weng Han Wong shared their culinary expertise on the history and cooking of Beijing Duck. While Adam Smith executive chef of Coworth Park gave the students top tips to preparing and succeeding in the seventh Zest Quest Asia final on the 7th February 2020.
Annette Coggins, head of foodservice at Tilda UK, said: “Zest Quest Asia is bigger than ever, and we want to ensure that our talented young chefs are supported not only for the competition but can reap the benefits in the future when cooking this exciting and vibrant cuisine.
“Rice can play an important part on menus, from vegan and gluten-free to global cuisine, it can carry any flavour and be in any course, making it a star ingredient in the kitchen. We hope our finalists are feeling inspired and we can’t wait to see what they cook up in the grand finale!”
The Zest Quest Asia winning college will go on a Tilda Italian Tour to learn the story behind Tilda’s Aborio rice and to have a tour round the rice mill.
The final cook off and gala dinner will be held on 7 February 2020 at the Hilton London Heathrow Airport Terminal Five.